Leaf collection device



June 9, 1964 R. HENKE LEAF COLLECTION DEVICE Filed Feb. 8, 1965 INVENTOR. PA YMcM/D Hewmr ATTORNEYS 3,l35,84 Patented June 9, 1964 United States-Patent Oil ice 3,135,984 LEAF COLLECTION DEVICE Raymond Henke, 7416 Clover-nook Ave, Cincinnati 31, ()hio Filed Feb. 8, 1963, Ser. No. 257,155 5 Claims. (Cl. 15--257.1)

The present invention relates to collection and disposal devices and more particularly to an improved leaf collection device.

In the fall of the year municipalities and home owners are faced with a troublesome problem of leaf collection and disposal. This problem is particularly diflicult because of windy conditions which often exist at that time of year coupled with a difficult fire hazard which is particularly troublesome in many localities which are normally quite arid and also in other localities following long periods without substantial quantities of rain.

Certain types of equipment for handling leaves are presently available but, quite aside from their expense, such equipment normally is of a type which is concerned with sweeping, either by brushing or vacuuming means, or leaf mulching and hence do not really attack or solve the problem of leaf disposal.

Some municipalities instruct residents to rake leaves in piles near the street curb for collection. Of course, there are limitations which include number of available trucks as well as limitations of man power and which preclude the provision of full time pick up and patrol service of a particular street insofar as leaf collection is concerned. Accordingly, in many instances, a resident will rake leaves into a pile near the curb and before the leaves can be picked up by city vehicles, the wind will scatter the leaves. Hence, the same home owner or some other home owner is again faced with the raking and collection of the leaves and again placing them in a pile near the street curb.

Population has increased to a point where most municipalities have ordinances prohibiting the burning of leaves by the residents because of the extreme danger of a fire getting out of control. Even in areas which are not heavily populated, the fire danger is an extremely serious one particularly in arid locations and also in other locations which are left quite dry following substantial periods without rainfall coupled with the additional hazard which results from windy conditions which are quite prevalent at the time of the year when the leaves need to be collected and disposed of.

In addition to the foregoing difiiculties, scattered leaves ultimately find their way into sewers and result in a very serious sewer stoppage problem. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide means for obviating the above mentioned difliculties.

A further object of the invention is in the provision of an improved leaf collection device of extremely simple construction which is easily understood and can be used by anyone, even children, with a minimum of instruction.

A further object of the invention is in the provision of an'improved leaf collection device of relatively simple construction which is easy to manufacture and inexpensive in cost.

A further object of the invention is in the provision of an improved leaf collection device employing an inexpensive disposable receptacle.

These and other objects of the invention will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. lis a perspective view illustrating a leaf collection device in accordance with the invention in a position erected for use;

FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view, looking in the direction of arrows 2-2 of FIG. 1, and illustrating the manner of support and assembly of the upper portion of the disposable receptacle,

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view, looking in the direction of the arrows 3-3 of FIG. 1, and illustrating the manner of assembly and securing of the lower portion of the disposable receptacle.

Throughout the various drawings, like numerals are utilized to designate like components. Further, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the embodiments illustrated in the drawings are merely intended to illustrate what is presently considered a preferred embodiment of the invention, and, therefore, the invention is not intended to be limited to only theembodiments illustrated in the drawings since various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the invention.

Referring now to the drawings, the invention, briefly stated, comprises a disposable receptacle together with means for securing and holding portions thereof in a desired location to facilitate the insertion of leaves thereof for appropriate disposition after the receptacle has been completely filled or for subsequent storage and confinement of such leaves after the receptacle has been partially filled.

I As illustrated in FIG. 1, a receptacle 1 in the form of a bag or bag-like container of suitable size and having a relatively large mouth or opening 2 is employed. The receptacle or bag 1 is of transparent material, for example; polyethylene or similar plastic material but it is to be understood that the invention is not necessarily limited thereto. If desired, almost any kind of inexpensive bag material can be employed in accordance with the invention including paper, burlap, etc. However, polyethylene bags or bags made from similar plastic materials, in addition to being relatively inexpensive, have certain advantages which are not possessed by other types of materials; for example, such materials are relatively impervious to and are not adversely affected by moisture.

In accordance with the invention, means are provided which perform the dual function of securely holding the bag in 'adesired location against the ground and simultaneously supporting other portions of the bag above the ground "so that the mouth 2 of the bag is in an open position to receive leaves. This is accomplished by the provision of a-pair of spaced poles 3 which perform the dual function of securing and supporting as noted above. Each pole 3 has an upper end portion 4 and a lower end portion 5. As is best illustrated in FIG. 2, a shoulder 6 is provided near but spaced from the extreme uppermost end 4 and serves as a support means for the upper open portion of the bag mouth 2. The precise form of shoulder 6 need not necessarily be as illustrated in FIG. 2 since almost any type of projection outwardly from the main body of pole 3 can be employed if such pro- ;jection is sufliciently large to form a support for the upper portion of bag 1.

As is illustrated in FIG. 3, pole 3 is provided with a lower end portion 5 of reduced diameter compared to that of pole 3. In this connection, it is to be noted that in the interest of manufacturing economies, it is contemplated that poles 3 may be provided, in accordance with the invention, with identical end portion 5 at their upper and lower ends. In such case, the reduction in diameter which occurs at the end portion 5 produces a shoulder portion 6a which can be utilized as a support means equivalent to shoulder 6 of FIG. 2, and also may be utilized as a hold down means as illustrated in FIG. 3.

If desired, openings protected by grommets 7, 8 may be provided in the sides of bag 1 adjacent its open end 2 in order to receive end portions 4, 5 of poles 3. However, if a bag of polyethylene or similar plastic material is employed and if poles having reduced end portions 5 at their upper and lower ends (as illustrated in FIG. 3) are employed, it is not necessary to provide holes or grommets 7, 8 since the plastic bag material is readily pierced by such reduced end portions 5 and the plastic material is sufiiciently strong that grommet-type protection is not necessary.

In order to provide stability for the supporting structure and also to provide hold down protection when the device is being used under windy conditions, upper and lower sills 9, 10 are provided. Sills 9, 10 are provided with openings 11, 12, respectively, near both end portions of the sills for receiving the upper or lower end portions of poles 3. If desired, an additional hole or opening 13 may be provided at each end of upper sill 9 for a purpose which will become apparent as the description proceeds.

Assembly and utilization of my improved leaf collection device is as follows. The bag or receptacle 1 is spread out on the ground at a desired location. Lower sill 10 is placed adjacent the inner surface of bag 1 and adjacent opening 2. The lower end portion 5 of one pole 3 is then inserted through openings 12 and also through the bag itself. The remaining pole 3 is similarly erected at the opposite end of sill 10. In this condition, sill 10 lies fiat against the inner surface of bag 1 and is securely held in such position by shoulders 6a of poles 3. Thus, the lower portion of bag opening 2 is held fiat and securely against the ground even in the presence of windy or gusty conditions. The upper end portion 4 of one of the poles 3 is then inserted through the upper surface of the bag adjacent the opening 2 thereof. The opposite pole is similarly inserted through the bag in a similar manner so that the upper portion of bag opening 2 is supported by shoulders 6 of the spaced apart poles (FIG. 1). The upper surface of the bag is then secured in place by inserting end portion 4 through opening 11 at one end of sill 9. The end portion 4 of the other pole 3 is similarly inserted in opening 11 provided at the opposite end of sill 9 so that the upper sill and the upper portion of the bag are now both supported by shoulders 6 (or 6a) of the spaced apart poles. In the event of sagging of the bag between poles 3 occurs due to stretching or for any other reason, the upper ends 4 of the poles may be inserted in openings 13 to reduce such sagging.

The leaves are then raked in a usual manner and placed within the receptacle or bag 1 while the mouth or open end portion 2 thereof is held in an open position by the device as described above. The bag or receptacle may be either filled completely for ultimate disposal of the leaves or it may be partially filled and stored pending a subsequent partial filling. In this connection, it may be desirable for the receptacle to be provided with vent holes to allow trapped air to escape and thus facilitate folding of the bag or receptacle. In either event, the leaves within the bag or receptacle are now confined and will not be scattered by a windy condition if that should arise prior to ultimate disposal of the leaves. Furthermore, the

leaves within the bag will be maintained in a relatively dry condition and protected against the possibility of rain twhich might otherwise occur and wet the leaves prior to their collection by leaf collection crews of the municipality.

Thus it will be seen that my improved leaf collection device provides for easy and inexpensive leaf collection, avoids duplication of effort and expense, avoids scattering of the leaves prior to their collection by the municipality, avoids problems arising from sewer stoppage by scattered leaves. In addition, leaves collected in inexpensive receptacles in accordance with the invention are maintained in a relatively dry condition which is particularly helpful for planning purposes in the case of those municipalities that dispose of leaves partly by delivery to nurserymen and partly by incineration.

While a particular embodiment of the invention has been illustrated it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the invention and it is intended in the appended claims to cover all such changes and modifications that fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A material collection device comprising a receptacle formed of flexible material, said receptacle having an opening for receiving material therewithin, a pair of separate rigid members adapted to be detachably secured to said receptacle, each of said members including opposite end portions of reduced cross sectionl dimension, each of said reduced end portions of each of said rigid members extending through the material of spaced portions of the receptacle, one reduced end portion of each of said rigid members being received in the ground for detachably securing the receptacle means to the ground at two spaced points, the rigid members each having a support shoulder adjacent the opposite reduced end portions thereof, said support portions engaging and supporting spaced portions of the receptacle adjacent the opening in the receptacle for holding the receptacle in operative position for receiving material, said rigid members being readily detachable from the receptacle by sliding the reduced end portions of the rigid members out of the material of the receptacle whereby the receptacle is adapted to be disposed of along with the contents therewithin, and the rigid members are adapted to be employed with another similar flexible receptacle means.

2. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein the flexible material of the receptacle is substantially impervious to moisture.

3. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein said receptacle is provided with preformed openings therein protected by grommets.

4. A material collection device comprising a receptacle means formed of flexible sheet material having an opening therein for receiving material therewithin, means for supporting the receptacle means in operative position for receiving material through said opening, said support means including a pair of separate rigid elongated members, each of said members having opposite reduced end portions fitting through the material of said receptacle adjacent the opening therewithin, a first elongated rigid sill member having spaced openings formed therein and said first sill member being disposed adjacent an edge portion of the receptacle at the opening therein, the reduced end portions of each of said first-mentioned rigid members extending through the openings in said first sill member and the material of the receptacle and into the ground for securing the receptacle in position at two spaced points, a second elongated rigid sill member having spaced openings formed therein, the opposite reduced end portions of each of said first-mentioned elongated members extending through the material of the receptacle and through the openings in the second sill member, said first-mentioned elongated rigid members having a support shoulder formed thereon for supporting the material of the receptacle, whereby the four separate rigid members provide a framework for supporting the receptacle in operative position with the opening thereof positioned to receive material therewithin, and whereby the framework as defined by the four rigid members can be readily detached from the receptacle and dis tmantled such that the receptacle can be disposed of along with its contents, While the rigid members may be re-asembled with another receptacle to enable re-use of the rigid members.

5. A device as defined in claim 4 wherein said second rigid sill member includes a first pair of spaced openings for receiving a reduced end portion of each of the firstmentioned elongated members, said second rigid sill member also including a second pair of openings formed therethrough for permitting said first-mentioned elongated rigid members to be inserted in diiferent openings References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Basso May 10, 1932 Bird Jan. 23, 1962 

1. A MATERIAL COLLECTION DEVICE COMPRISING A RECEPTACLE FORMED OF FLEXIBLE MATERIAL, SAID RECEPTACLE HAVING AN OPENING FOR RECEIVING MATERIAL THEREWITHIN, A PAIR OF SEPARATE RIGID MEMBERS ADAPTED TO BE DETACHABLY SECURED TO SAID RECEPTACLE, EACH OF SAID MEMBERS INCLUDING OPPOSITE END PORTIONS OF REDUCED CROSS SECTIONAL DIMENSION, EACH OF SAID REDUCED END PORTIONS OF EACH OF SAID RIGID MEMBERS EXTENDING THROUGH THE MATERIAL OF SPACED PORTIONS OF THE RECEPTACLE, ONE REDUCED END PORTION OF EACH OF SAID RIGID MEMBERS BEING RECEIVED IN THE GROUND FOR DETACHABLY SECURING THE RECEPTACLE MEANS TO THE GROUND AT TWO SPACED POINTS, THE RIGID MEMBERS EACH HAVING A SUPPORT SHOULDER ADJACENT THE OPPOSITE REDUCED END PORTIONS THEREOF, SAID SUPPORT PORTIONS ENGAGING AND SUPPORTING SPACED PORTIONS OF THE RECEPTACLE ADJACENT THE OPENING IN THE RECEPTACLE FOR HOLDING THE RECEPTACLE IN OPERATIVE POSITION FOR RECEIVING MATERIAL, SAID RIGID MEMBERS BEING READILY DETACHABLE FROM THE RECEPTACLE BY SLIDING THE REDUCED END PORTIONS OF THE RIGID MEMBERS OUT OF THE MATERIAL OF THE RECEPTACLE WHEREBY THE RECEPTACLE IS ADAPTED TO BE DISPOSED OF ALONG WITH THE CONTENTS THEREWITHIN, AND THE RIGID MEMBERS ARE ADAPTED TO BE EMPLOYED WITH ANOTHER SIMILAR FLEXIBLE RECEPTACLE MEANS. 